Here are 3 Used Cars for ‘Stupid People’ According to Scotty Kilmer
Buying a used car can be a gamble if you don’t know what to look for. Some used cars can have more unseen issues than others, which can offset the money that you might save on the initial buy-in price. Scotty Kilmer – a master mechanic and YouTuber – knows this all too well and he often warns his viewers about cars that are not worth buying. Here are three cars that he thinks only “stupid people” drive on a daily basis.
Parts for the 2008 BMW 335i are expensive
If you peruse your local Craigslist classifieds, you’ll often see a lot of older BMWs for sale. Their low prices make them tempting, but you should avert your eyes as that low cost of entry is there for a reason. As Kilmer explains in his recent video while using a 2008 BMW 335i as an example, “They are packed full of modern technology, but that’s the reason I tell people not to buy these BMWs. Under the hood, there are layers and layers of technology.”
Those layers of technology can easily turn into a nightmare as time goes on and BMW parts are not cheap. Using Kilmer’s BMW 335i as an example, it has a twin-turbo, inline-6 engine under the hood that pushes out 300 hp. It’s a fast car, but if any repairs are needed, then things can get pretty pricey. “If they go bad, the turbochargers are over $3,000 apiece with $2,000 in labor, Kilmer said.
That’s around $8,000 in total, which means that the low price that you originally paid for the car is now no longer a bargain. To add insult to injury, many older BMWs like this specific 335i have plenty of plastic parts under the hood. Over time, those plastic parts get brittle, and replacing them can sometimes cost $300 to $500.
“Age destroys the plastics. The heat from the engine under the hood, this stuff cracks and falls apart,” Kilmer said. “If you buy a beautiful-looking car like this used one, you are playing with dynamite. You never know what’s going to blow and when it’s going to go.”
The 2008 Mercedes-Benz SLK 55 AMG is a gas guzzler
The 2008 Mercedes-Benz SLK 55 AMG is a beautiful two-seat roadster with a 5.5-liter V8 engine. Aside from the wonderful sound that it makes, that V8 is also capable of producing 355 hp and 376 lb-ft of torque. It’s quite the performer, however, it can cause new owners a lot of headaches. In his video, Kilmer was able to pull a multitude of codes from the Mercedes, which he said was not unusual for a 12-year-old car from the German automaker.
Kilmer didn’t have too many reasons why this particular car is for “stupid people,” but he did go over the fact that maintaining one can be very expensive, even down to the low-profile tires. It’s also not very fuel-efficient either. “It’s a fast little sports car, but because of the weight and power, it gets about 13 mpg in the city, 19 on the highway. So It’s pretty much a gas guzzler,” Kilmer said.
The Mercedes-Benz G-Wagon is expensive to repair
The Mercedes-Benz G 550 is a perennial favorite among celebrities, rap stars, and athletes. However, for us common folks who don’t have a steady cash flow of millions of dollars, the Mercedes G Wagon isn’t the best choice for a daily driver, especially a used one like the 2016 model that Kilmer showed in his video. “When they get to be this age, they’re going to have problems up the wazoo,” Kilmer said.
Despite going over how well-built and “solid” the Mercedes G Wagon is, Kilmer added how much it can rust over time and how ridiculously expensive it is to repair. It’s not very fuel-efficient either as Kilmer mentions that the G 550 most likely gets around 10 mpg on average.
Also, the particular G 550 that he used as an example had over 45 stored error codes when he plugged in his onboard diagnostic reader. And while not all of them were too threatening, you can bet that any of those issues could be expensive to fix.
“So realize, if you’re going to buy a G Wagon, especially a used one, you can’t impress people with how rich you are because you’ll probably be spending a bunch of money fixing it if you keep it for years. These are not cheap to repair or maintain vehicles.”
They are good cars, just potential money pits
While Kilmer might think that the following cars are reserved for “stupid people,” it’s worth it to say that they are good cars underneath it all, provided you have deep pockets. Kilmer also alluded to the fact that it’s mainly doctors and lawyers that buy these cars because they’re the only ones that can afford to keep them running.
“If you’re counting your pennies and you’re thinking about buying one of these things used. My advice is to just keep saying to yourself ‘endless money pit, endless money pit, endless money pit,” Kilmer adds. “If you really love it and have to have it, lease one, don’t buy it… Yes, they are beautiful cars, but sometimes, beauty can be deceiving.”
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